Creative Albany is delighted to welcome Leon Delpech as the design and innovation Great Southern (D!GS) coordinator.   Leon is already busy building creative connections, organizing events, creating new pathways in innovation and developing a work plan to help build a strong culture of innovation, creativity and collaboration in the Great Southern.

Leon is supported by an Executive Committee of local professionals who are committed to helping to drive innovation and creativity.   Together they are working towards creating a hub of energy and opportunity for new ideas in the Great Southern.    We invite you to join us on this journey as we celebrate and strengthen the Great Southern's culture of innovation and creativity. 

Email Leon at
leon.delpech@creativealbany.org
to learn more about the project, to become involved, and to go on the contact list for upcoming events.

Many of you already attend our regular D!GS networking events, and we look forward to welcoming even more Great Southern designers, ideas people and organisations to join with us in building
a network of opportunity and collaboration.

We hope to see you soon!

Since securing a commitment for funding at the last State election, Creative Albany has been busy talking to government about innovation in the Regions as the WA government formulates it’s policy and funding priorities.  Watch Local member Peter Watson and Minister MacTiernan talk about the DIGS Hub here:

We were invited to attend a round table discussion with the Premier in August as one of only 2 regionally based creatives, In October we met with Peter Watson MLA and Minister MacTiernan to confirm the commitment of $340,000 for our DIGS hub proposal, and in November we were invited to attend the Regional Innovation Summit in Bunbury.

The Summit provided valuable opportunities to meet other creative groups from all over the State - and hear from national experts about trends in innovation, successful models and upcoming opportunities. The summit was hosted by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development who presented a strategy for supporting innovation and entrepreneurs in WA. This includes 4 pillars to help build innovation ‘ecologies’;

PILLAR 1: Talent, Skills and Entrepreneurs – How do we build and maintain a strong pipeline of talent with a relevant mix of STEM and entrepreneurial skills to commercialise ideas globally?
PILLAR 2: Investment and Infrastructure – How do we ensure an accessible network of transport, telecommunications and capital to facilitate the movement of people, information and goods?
PILLAR 3: Culture and Collaboration – How do we increase connectivity between regions and stakeholders to better support entrepreneurs and innovators for success?
PILLAR 4: Marketing and Promotion – How do we celebrate our successes and develop a consistent, globally recognised brand that attracts investment and talent to our regions?

Creative Albany was able to send Sally to Bunbury with the assistance of Country Arts WA and we gratefully acknowledge their support:

We are now working to secure the release of the DIGS funding based on the guidelines presented at the Summit, and are building partnerships with other organisations so as to ensure we have a strong and sustainable base to work from.

If you would like to know more about DIGS or attend our DIGS networking events,  please contact us.

Creative Albany has added another 'string to our bow' with the successful completion of public string instrument masterclasses in Albany.

We supported the WA branch of the Strings Association in bringing renown violinist Brian Finlayson to the Great Southern and other regional centres to conduct public string masterclasses, work with members of the Albany Sinfonia and teach string students at Great Southern Grammar and Albany Senior High School.

Professor Finlayson, who is the head of strings at the State Conservatorium of Carinthia in Austria and former leader of the Australian Philharmonic Orchestra, worked with participants on their playing techniques as well with interpretation of pieces played from an artistic point of view. Local string musicians are now looking forward to the National AUSTA in Perth In July 2018, at which regional teachers and participants will have further opportunity to build the skills developed with Brian.

AUSTA WA was grateful to Creative Albany for acting as auspicer and assisting in securing funding towards the project from Country Arts WA:

In the first ever GovHack event run in Albany, both our teams won first prize in their event categories at the recent State awards.  Congratulations to all the 'hackers' and organisers involved - Creative Albany is a very proud sponsor.  we look forward to next year's event and encourage creative thinkers of all sorts to get involved.

Department of Primary Industries Award Winner.

RAC Sustainable Mobility Award Winner

This is what GovHack had to say about Emilian :
Emilian Roman was recommended by a local TAFE lecturer to provide the organising committee with support and technical expertise. He really came into his own and showed how expansive his skills and knowledge were and was an amazing member of the Albany team. He willingly assisted other competitors throughout the competition and was fantastic at ensuring the systems pulled together for the weekend ran smoothly. He provided clear documentation of the tech side to our sponsoring contractors and designed a stunning Livestream Frame to promote our local sponsors. He was our quiet achiever.

The Weekender Sept 14th.

"The latest news from Matt - who's winging his way to Albany
(perhaps on his Jiminy Cricket wings as pictured above!)

"It’s less than a month now until my major project 40 Years Later in Albany, Western Australia and things are really getting busy. I’ve just finished my latest show in London and am making my way to Albany via NSW with family. 40 Years Later is a singing and acting project about the last year of whaling in Australia, or more specifically the events surrounding the international Save the Whale Campaign staged in Albany in 1977. These events are still controversial today, with the eventual protection of whales in 1978 at the loss of many livelihoods of local families.
 
As a performer, my main task is as an interpreter of other’s music. And what I’m really excited about is how 40 Years Later looks towards finding a place for performers as equal part creators. Singing and acting has always been an integral part of my life and profession and my residency at the Vancouver Arts Centre in partnership with Creative Albany Inc and Albany’s Historic Whaling Station has afforded me the perfect chance to explore my place as performer, interpreter and creator.
 
40 Years Later includes at least 19 workshops for schools, existing community groups and the local community. It features at its heart the creation of a new theatre and music work, to be performed in a World Premiere on the 27th of August 2017 by a number of the workshop participants. I’ve been working closely with composer, Jonathan Brain, to create for Albany, its first music and theatre work (or contemporary opera).
 
What’s thrilling for me is how singing and acting can lift history off the page. How it allows us to access our past in a personal and very honest manner. The creation of new music looks towards forwarding our understanding of what performance can be. How can we create new work which both teaches us more about singing and acting and celebrates history in a non-cerebral, exciting way? We certainly hope that 40 Years Later will do just that! In the next few weeks you might get a glimpse of our creation in progress, and we promise you it will excite and challenge your ideas about what vocal performance can be. So join us, and decide for yourself."
 
What’s on:
5th August 2017, 10:00-13:00: Scratch Choir,
Albany’s Historic Whaling Station.

6th August 2017, 14:00-15:00: Matt in Concert, Skeleton Shed,
Albany’s Historic Whaling Station.

12th & 19th August 2017, 10:00-13:00 Open Workshops,
Vancouver Arts Centre.

27 August 2017, 15:00-16:00 & 17:00-18:00 World Premiere of 40 YEARS LATER, Vancouver Arts Centre.
 
More info and bookings at www.vpinitiative.com/40yearslater
 

​Albany artist Louise Allerton and Sydney based media artist Julian Knowles have been in development on the This Visceral Landscape exhibition which opens August 8 at the Vancouver Art Centre, Albany. Funded by Country Arts WA and auspiced by Creative Albany Inc, the exhibition consists of a range of sound and media responses to the landscapes of the south western region. Using custom software developed by the artists, a range of responsive works will draw on live data from five weather stations in the region which influence and activate responsive video works in the gallery. The viewer is immersed in an audio-visual environment that is dynamic and environmentally responsive, inviting viewers to return to the exhibition during different weather conditions to experience the ways in which the physical environment outside the gallery impacts the artworks. The project investigates the ways in which artworks can be conceived as dynamic systems which embrace physical phenomena as core structuring elements.